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This study was designed to determine the utility of procalcitonin (PCT) and C-reactive protein (CRP) as predictors of Gram-negative bloodstream infection (GN-BSI) in hematological febrile outpatients at the time of the emergency unit admission. Overall, 286 febrile episodes, which included 42 GN-BSI (16%), were considered. PCT levels at patient admission were statistically higher in GNB-BSI when compared to Gram-positive bacteria BSI (median 4.06 ng/ml (range 1.10-25.04) vs 0.88 ng/ml (0.42-10), p<0.03) and to all other fever etiologies. For CRP, differences within fever etiologies were less profound but statistically significant, except for GN-BSIs vs GP BSIs (p=0.4). ROC analysis of PCT showed that an AUC of 0.85 (95%CI 0.79-0.95) discriminated GN-BSI from all other fever etiologies, with a best cut-off of 0.5 ng/ml, a negative predictive value (NPV) of 98%, and a negative likelihood ratio (negLR) of 0.1. ROC analysis of CRP showed an AUC of 0.67 (95%CI 0.53-0.81) with a best cut-off of 6.64 mg/dl, a NPV of 94%, and a negLR of 0.33. This study confirms that 0.5 ng/ml represents the PCT best cut-off to differentiate the cause of fever and rule out a GN-BSI in febrile hematologic outpatients at the time of the emergency unit admission. Therefore, introducing PCT testing could be a valid measure in order to tailor a more precise prompt antimicrobial therapy to the febrile outpatient while waiting for blood culture results., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Purpose: The use of peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC) as an alternative to other central venous access devices (CVAD) is becoming very frequent in cancer patients. To evaluate the impact of complications associated to these devices in patients with hematologic malignancies, we revised the catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSI) and the catheter-related thrombotic complications (CRTC) observed at our institute between January 2009 and December 2012., Methods: A total of 612 PICCs were inserted into 483 patients at diagnosis or in subsequent phases of their hematologic disease. PICCs were successfully inserted in all cases. The median duration of in situ PICC placement was 101 days (interquartile range, 48-184 days)., Results: A CRBSI occurred in 47 cases (7.7 %), with a rate of 0.59 per 1000 PICC days. A CRTC was recorded in 16 cases (2.6 %), with a rate of 0.20 per 1000 PICC days. No serious complication was associated to these events. Cox regression analyses of variables associated to CRBSIs and to CRTCs showed that only the type of disease (acute leukemia compared to other diseases) was significantly associated to a higher incidence of CRBSIs, while no feature was predictive for a higher risk of CRTCs., Conclusions: PICCs represent a useful and safe alternative to conventional CVAD for the management of patients with hematologic malignancies.